


That Summer

by YamiAki96



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Dad Dean, F/F, Gay Panic, M/M, Musicians, Onesided Castiel/OMC, Past Castiel/Crowley - Freeform, Singer Castiel, Singer Dean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-05
Updated: 2014-08-05
Packaged: 2018-02-11 21:34:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2083992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YamiAki96/pseuds/YamiAki96
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma spends the summer with her music star dad. When asked to do a collaboration, they meet Castiel Novak and his niece, Claire.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That Summer

“Be careful,” Lydia said as Emma was about to board her flight. “And don’t let Dean talk you into anything stupid.” Emma rolled her eyes and gave her ticket to the attendant.

 

Emma loved the time she spent with her dad. Even if paparazzi chased them all over the place. Being one of the most popular music stars in the world comes with its cavats, she supposed.

 

When the plane landed in LA, Emma was the first one off. She saw Dean, surrounded by a hoard of women and cameras, and yelled for his attention. He saw her and smiled, pushing through the crowd to get to her. He wrapped her up in a tight hug and spun her around.

 

The cameras went wild.

 

“How ya been, kid?” Dean asked her as he carried her luggage to the Impala, after the finally got out of the building.

 

“Okay. Mom’s been a bitch, but…”

 

“Don’t say that about your mom. She’s the only one you got, you know.”

 

“I just wish I could live with you.” Dean smiled sadly at her.

 

“Me, too, baby. Let’s get goin’, huh? Benny’s makin’ ribs.”

 

Spending time with the honorary Winchesters was the second best thing about being Dean. Her “uncles” Benny, Garth, and Kevin (and her real uncle Sam) were awesome, while her “aunts” Jo, Charlie, and Sam’s wife Jess were great to talk to, especially now that she was older. But Benny had always been her favorite.

 

When they got to his house, Benny gave her one of his giant bear hugs that made Emma feel extremely loved, but like her guts were getting squeezed out.

 

“Missed you, kido.” Benny said.

 

“I missed you, too, Uncle Benny,” Emma wheezed out. He put her down and studied her.

 

“You’re finally gettin’ pretty,” Emma punched his arm, but laughed.

 

They ate dinner and hung out for a while before heading across the street to Dean’s house.

 

After she changed, Emma found Dean making two bowls of their favorite ice cream. They settled on the sofa and Emma flipped through the channels until she found Fantasy Factory re-runs on MTV. Dean hated MTV (“They may as well rename it Dyrdek-and-Pregnant-Teens TV”) but Emma knew he secretly liked anything with Rob on it.

 

“You dating anybody?” Dean asked as a commercial came on.

 

“No. You?”

 

“Only in the tabloids.” Emma smiled. Her dad had never been great with relationships. He didn’t like opening up to people and that ruined potential relationships with Lisa, Aaron, Anna, and Emma’s mom. But there were others, like Benny and Jo, that he’d been close enough to that, when they broke up, they stayed close.

 

“What do you know about Castiel Novak?” He asked later, playing with Emma’s hair.

 

“He’s okay. Different sound from you, kind of cookie-cutter really. Why?”

 

“They want us to collaborate for the PCAs.” Dean shrugged.

 

“I’ll make a playlist, let you get acquainted.” Dean nodded. Emma fell asleep soon after, nestled against Dean’s side. She woke up the next morning in her bed.

* * *

“Here,” Emma said, handing Dean a CD. She’d downloaded most of Castiel’s hits for him. “The last few songs are live from bars and demos before he got signed. I like them better.”

 

“Thanks, Em. Wanna take a drive?” She nodded and went to get dressed. She was surprised when Dean handed her the keys.

 

“You’re joking,” She said, following him out the door.

 

“You hurt my baby and you’ll be in trouble,” He responded, sliding into the passenger seat.

 

“Shouldn’t you be telling my first boyfriend that?” Emma asked. Dean rolled his eyes.

 

The Impala was a big change from her mom’s little car, but Dean was calm and helped her out. As she drove, Dean put the CD in and let Castiel’s voice surround them.

 

“This one’s my favorite,” Emma said, causing Dean to turn it up and look at the name. _What You Gonna Do_ was slow, sad, and had a country sound that was different from the pop songs that Castiel was famous for.

 

They ended up at the movie theater and the girl behind the counter couldn’t even speak as Dean asked for two tickets.

 

“Why are all these women in love with you? You’re like a hundred.” Emma joked as they sat at the back of the theater.

 

“I’m thirty seven, brat.” Dean snarked back. They settled back as the previews started, Dean’s arm around Emma’s shoulder, warding off teenage boys.

 

A few hours later, they were on their way home when Dean decided.

 

“I’m gonna do a song with him,” He announced.

 

“That’s great, Dad,” Emma said, leaning against the passenger window.

 

Dean pulled into a drive through for some cheap burgers and greasy fries. They ate at the dining room table, quoting the movie they just saw and talking about their favorite parts. Emma went to bed after that and Dean called his manager.

 

A few days later, Dean had his meeting with Castiel, and Emma insisted on going.

 

“It’s…kinda small,” Emma said, looking up at Castiel’s house. Dean shrugged and knocked. A man Emma recognized as Castiel from pictures opened the door.

 

“Hey, I’m Dean Winchester.”

 

“I was expecting you,” Cas said, awkwardly. Almost like he was shy. “Castiel. Cas.”

 

“This is my daughter, Emma. She just wanted to tag along.”

 

“That’s fine. My niece, Claire, is out by the pool if you want to hang out with her while your dad and I work?”

 

“Okay,” Emma said. Cas led them in and pointed Emma towards the back door.

 

“We’ll be up in the studio if you need us. Claire can show you the way,”

 

“Okay,” Emma was glad that when she was with Dean her underwear was a bikini as she approached the pool. A blond girl looked up from a lounge chair.

 

“I’m Emma Winchester. My dad’s working with your uncle.”

 

“Claire,” The other girl said. She had a stack of books by her side. The Hobbit was currently in her hands.

 

“Good book,” Emma commented.

 

“I just started.”

 

“Do you mind if I…” Emma gestured to the stack.

 

“Just be careful. They’re gifts from Cas.” Emma carefully studied the titles before choosing one. She slipped out of her clothes and laid back in one of the chairs

 

“Have you ever read it?” Emma asked, nodding to Claire’s book.

 

“No. My parents are…very religious and didn’t want the influence,” Claire said.

 

“That sucks. My dad read them to me when I was little.”

 

“That must have been a trip,” Claire said. “From the clips I’ve seen, you’re dad is… interesting.”

 

“Oh, he’s a weirdo. But so am I. So is everyone.” Claire smiled, then returned to her book. She and Emma read quietly for a long time before Dean and Castiel emerged from the house.

 

“You ready, Em?” Dean asked.

 

“Yeah,” She stood up. “It was nice to meet you.”

 

“You, too.” Claire smiled.

 

On the way home, Dean looked at Emma.

 

“How was it?”

 

“Okay. Claire’s parents never let her read Tolkien, so Castiel bought them for her. How was work?”

 

“We just kinda hung out. We’re getting to know each other before we go any farther.” Emma snorted

 

“What, are you dating?” Dean rolled his eyes.

 

“Songwriting is a process, Emma. It takes time and emotion to make a good song.”

 

“I know. I’m kidding.” They drove in silence for a while, the radio a faint murmur in the background. “So, are we going back tomorrow?”

 

“Cas and Claire are coming over. Maybe you two can go do something. Go shopping or whatever girls do.”

 

“Sounds cool,” Emma said. “Can we get pizza for dinner?”

 

A few weeks later, Emma and Claire were sitting by the pool at Dean’s while Dean and Cas worked on their song.

 

“It’s weird,” Claire decided.

 

“What?” Emma asked, squinting at her.

 

“My uncle working with your dad.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because Cas doesn’t like people. Plus, the guy he’d been with for, like, two years just left him a couple of weeks ago. Like, packed while he was sleeping and disappeared.”

 

“Harsh,” Emma said.

 

“Yeah. That’s why I’m here. I didn’t want him to be alone. Cas isn’t really good with stuff like that.”

 

“You guys must be close.”

 

“I’m closer to him than I am my parents,” Claire said. “I mean, Cas talks to me like I matter, you know?”

 

“That’s how I feel with my mom and dad. My mom never wants to talk about anything.”

 

“I know the feeling. My mom didn’t even talk me through my first period. I had to call Cas’s ex-girlfriend for help.”

 

“Oh, wow. Awkward.” Emma shivered at the thought of having to call Lisa or Anna for that reason.

 

“Meg’s okay,” Claire shrugged. “Crowley was…awful. Cas deserves better than what he had with him.”

 

Emma wanted to push the subject when they heard music floating through the window of Dean’s studio.

 

“Your dad is pretty awesome, you know.” Claire said.

 

“Your uncle used to be.” Emma blushed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-”

 

“He hates what they make him do. He wanted to be singer/songwriter, acoustic. But when they signed him the label told him he had to be a pop star. He thought it’d only be for a few years, until he got really popular, but it hasn’t changed.”

 

“Why not just leave?” Claire shrugged and pulled her sunglasses over her eyes. Emma knew to drop it.

 

Dean and Cas spent weeks working on their song. Emma and Claire would go shopping and get lunch or hang by the pool for a few hours (Claire had gotten a great tan and Emma had freckled as bad as Dean.)

 

One day, the girls came in from shopping and found Dean and Cas making out on the living couch.

 

“Oh, my God!” Emma said, dropping her bags. Dean jerked back in surprise and Cas blushed.

 

“You’re back early,” Dean said, standing up.

 

“How long has this been going on?”

 

“Em-”

 

“Dad.” Dean sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

 

“A few weeks,” Claire spoke up. Emma looked at her then glared at Dean.

 

“And you didn’t _tell_ me?” Before Dean could answer she ran up the stairs, slamming the door to her room behind her. A few minutes later the weight on her bed shifted.

 

“I’m sorry,” Dean said, touching Emma’s hair.

 

“You lied to me,” She mumbled into her pillow.

 

“No, Em. I’d never lie to you. I- I didn’t know what to tell you.” Emma sat up.

 

“You couldn’t have said ‘Oh, Emma, by the way, me and Cas are hooking up occasionally. Just thought I’d fill you in before some tabloid did.’ Really, Dad?” Dean sighed.

 

“I didn’t wanna get your hopes up or make things weird for you. I’m no good with relationships and you and Claire are friends now-”

 

“How did Claire find out?”

 

“I don’t know. Cas was as surprised as I was.” Emma sighed and leaned into Dean.

 

“We’re fucked up, Dad,” She said. Dean chuckled and hugged her tighter.

 

“Yeah,” He agreed. “We sure are.”

 

When the song was finally written, Dean and Cas set out on making the music that would work with it. That meant loud, mostly obnoxious, sounds that drove Emma and Claire out of the house within twenty minutes. They’d end up on the beach or the board walk, usually, just walking until they had to turn around.

 

During those days, Emma found herself staring at Claire. Like a lot. Her face, her lips, her body. When she realized what she was doing, she pulled away from their friendship a bit, insisting on going out when Claire wanted to swim or refusing to the beach because she wanted to hold her hand when they walked side by side. They sat in the living room, trying to watch TV over the music or trying to ignore the lack of music when Dean and Cas were alone up stairs.

 

“You don’t think they’re…y’know?” Claire whispered one day when the air was still.

 

“Would it surprise you?” Emma responded. “Where’re you going?”

 

Claire sneaked up the stairs, soundlessly, for a second before running back down.

 

“Ew, ew, ew!” They ran outside, giggling, and fell over each other in the yard.

 

“What happened?” Emma asked.

 

“I could _hear_ them,” Claire groaned and Emma started giggling again. Until she realized how closely they were pressed together. She scrambled up and stepped back. She didn’t get close to Claire for the rest of the night, not even sitting next to her at dinner that night.

 

The ride home with Dean was quiet and awkward. He tried to talk a few times, but Emma iced him out every time. He gave up and turned the radio on and Emma stared out the window.

 

She went straight to her room when they got home, ignoring Dean when he asked if she wanted to watch some Fantasy Factory. Emma buried herself in blankets and pillows.

 

She pulled the blankets away when there was knock on the door. Dean was leaning there in his pajamas. There was a hickey low on his neck.

 

“What’s up? You’re being quiet.”

 

“Nothing. Just thinking.” Emma mumbled. They were quiet for a while before Dean spoke.

 

“I love you, you know. More than anything.”

 

“I love you, too, Dad.” Emma responded, confused.

 

“And you know you can tell me anything? That I won’t judge you or whatever?”

 

“I know.” But nothing else followed.

 

“Okay,” Dean said, looking down. “Good night, Em.”

 

“Night, Dad,” Dean pulled the door most of the way shut and Emma heard him walk down the hall.

 

When they got to Castiel’s the next day, the door opened before Dean could knock.

 

“Cas?” Dean asked, surprised. The man before them was clean shaven in a button down shirt and slacks.

 

“No,” The man said. “I’m James. Claire’s dad. I’m here to pick her up.”

 

“Pick her up?” Emma asked.

 

“School starts soon.” Cas and Claire came down the stairs then. Claire hugged him tight.

 

“I love you, Cas.” She said. “Take care of yourself.”

 

“I love you, too. See you soon.” He kissed her head and let her go. “Goodbye, Jimmy.”

 

“Castiel,” The other man nodded. Claire hugged Dean and Emma quickly and climbed into the car Emma hadn’t noticed in the driveway. Claire waved at them as her dad drove them away.

 

Emma sat alone on the couch as Dean played guitar upstairs. She sighed miserably when the music was replaced with the silence that meant they’d relocated to Cas’s bedroom.

 

The rest of her time with Dean was spent in a lonely haze of Cas’s house and shopping and a few boring dinners Dean had to attend. Before she knew it, Dean was dropping her off at airport and hugging her goodbye.

 

“I’ll see you at Christmas,” He said into her hair. Emma hugged him tighter, feeling tears in her eyes.

 

“I love you, daddy.” She whispered.

 

“I love you, too, baby. Call me when you get home, okay?” Emma nodded and let him go. Dean smiled a little and dried her eyes before she got on the plane back to Seattle and her mom.

 

A few weeks of boring classes, extreme fights with her mom, and talking to Dean (who was now on a cross country tour) on skype, Emma got a text from Claire. That wasn’t unusual in itself, Claire and Emma talked all the time. But this message shocked Emma to the core.

 

 _Look_ , Claire started, _I know this is weird and awful and will probably ruin everything, but I think I like you. Like, like you, like you._ Emma almost dropped her phone in her hurry to call Claire.

 

“Are you mad?” Claire asked first thing.

 

“Why would I be mad?” There was a long pause. “You do remember that my dad is dating your uncle, right? I’m not  homophobic.”

 

“I _know_. But…You always talked about guys and stuff so….”

 

“I think I like you, too. Like, _like_ like you.” Emma whispered.

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah.” They were quiet for a long time, but smiling like idiots.

 

“So…now what?” Claire finally asked.

 

“I guess we keep going like we have been until we see each other again.” Emma said.

 

So they did. They called and texted and skyped almost everyday. After a few months their conversations started getting frisky, then they started blatantly sexting. Emma and Claire decided to keep their relationship a secret, and Emma felt bad about not telling Dean until Claire called her one day with some news.

 

“Did Dean tell you that he and Cas broke up?”

 

“No, when?” Emma asked, pulling up Dean’s skype immediately.

 

“A few weeks ago. Cas won’t talk about it, though. I’m worried.”

 

“I’ll call you back,” Emma hung up just as Dean appeared on her screen. “When did you dump Cas?”

 

“Hello to you too.”

 

“Dad.” Dean sighed.

 

“We had a fight a few weeks ago. He was being stupid and-”

 

“How?”

 

“He was using drugs, Em.”

 

“Well, yeah.” Dean looked surprised. “Listen to his music, Dad. Or read his website. Cas has had a problem with addiction since he was in high school. And like you have any room to talk. You used to need God knows how much whisky to even sleep at night.”

 

“I got better.” Dean snapped.

 

“Because you wanted to see me. You had a reason to fight and you won. What does he have, Dean?” Emma surprises herself by using his first name. Dean sighed, frustrated.

 

“You don’t get it, Emma.”

 

“Oh, I get it. You finally fell for a good guy and you got scared. You found a reason to break up with him and you ran away. Just like you always do. What if he really needs you, Dad? What if he really needs something to fight for?” Emma ended the call on that question and called Claire.

 

“That’s ridiculous!” The other girl said.

 

“I know! Dean’s an idiot.”

 

They went on for a while about Dean and Cas before Claire had to go do her homework. Emma tucked herself in with a book, instead of doing her own.

 

The next day, she came home to her mother sitting in the kitchen, fuming.

 

“What’s up?” Emma asked, dropping her bag.

 

“Do you want to explain these texts to me?” Lydia demanded, indication to a stack of papers next to her.

 

“You read my texts? That’s, like, invasion of privacy!”

 

“Not when I’m paying your ridiculous cell phone bills!” Her mother retorted. “Who is Claire?”

 

“She’s…my girlfriend, I guess.”

 

“I knew letting you see him was a bad idea. He’s filling your mind with these disgusting thoughts.”

 

“First of all, my dad has nothing to do with me and Claire. Second, Dad doesn’t fill my head with any thoughts.”

 

“Well, we won’t have to worry about that anymore, anyway. You won’t be going back there. And neither will this Claire.” Emma’s eyes widened.

 

“What did you do?”

 

“What needed to be done.”

 

“What did you do?!” Emma yelled.

 

“I called her parents,” Lydia said, calmly. “I informed them of the vile things that their daughter was doing.” Emma felt sick. All she wanted was to go upstairs and call Claire and be done with this.

 

“I don’t blame you, Emma. We’re gonna get you help and you’ll be good again. Good and clean and normal.” Lydia promised. “But until then, I’m taking your phone and computer. Go get them.”

 

“No,” The slap was a surprise. Emma stared at her mother, tears filling her eyes as her cheek burned.

 

“Go get them, now.” Emma ran up the stairs. She threw her cell phone down as she went, thrilled when the battery popped out. She wanted to throw her laptop, too, but an idea suddenly hit her.

 

After one last search, she cleared the memory and sat the computer outside her door, which she quickly slammed and locked.

 

Instead of eating dinner that night, Emma stayed in her room and quietly packed a bag.

 

After the sun had set and she was sure Lydia was asleep, Emma climbed out of her window and caught a ride to the airport.

 

When the plane landed in Ohio, Emma was glad she had plenty of cash on her. Dinner cost her and arm and cab fare cost her the rest of her limbs and major organs. But she didn’t have to pay anything to get into the concert. All access backstage passes had their advantages, she guessed.

 

She took a seat in the second row, unable to go back to Dean yet. No doubt Lydia had called him, and if she went back before the concert started Dean would cancel the show and put her on the first plane back to Seattle.

 

Seeing Dean on stage was strange. He wasn’t himself. He was still funny and energetic, but he was also tattoos, fake smiles, and so corporate. Emma hated it.

 

He was in the middle of a song when he finally noticed her and cut off mid-lyric, saying her name. He shook it off and finished the song, before disappearing backstage for a second. He returned quickly and started performing again. A few minutes later, Benny was pulling Emma through the crowd, shoving his own fans out of the way for her.

 

Emma sat backstage for what felt like hours. Benny and Jo tried talking to her, but she ignored them. She didn’t know she was crying until Charlie started wiping her face with tissues.

 

“You okay?” She asked, after finally getting a reaction. Emma only shook her head. “Your dad’ll be back here soon, okay?”

 

“Emma!” She finally heard Dean calling a while later. “Emma.”

 

“Dad,” She jumped up when he got close enough and wrapped her arms around him.

 

“Are you okay? What are doing here?”

 

“I got in a fight with Mom and I didn’t know what else to do,” Dean held her tight as she started crying again and pulled her to his dressing room. He sat her down when they were inside and went to call Lydia.

 

“Hey, it’s Dean. I have Emma…She’s fine…No, I didn’t _let_ her fly to Ohio…She said you got into a fight…Over what?...All seventeen year olds sext…Oh…No, I didn’t know…” Dean sighed. “Look, I’ll keep her here for a few days, let her calm down, then we’ll talk about her going home…I know…Bye.”

 

Emma looked up as Dean sat across from her.

 

“Was it Claire?” Emma nodded. Dean ran his hand through his hair. “You know, I figured. I was hoping you’d talk to me about it before you left, but you didn’t.”

 

“I was scared,” Emma whispered.

 

“Of me? Emma, you do realize I’ve had sex with other men, right? That me and Benny dated for, like, a year?”

 

“I know.”

 

“Then why were you scared?”

 

“I don’t know!” She started crying and Dean moved to sit beside her, pulling her to him.

 

“I love you, Em. Not your sexuality. Just you. I’d never get mad at you for liking someone, okay?”

 

“Mom yelled at me,” Emma sobbed. “She told me it was disgusting and she took my phone. She called Claire’s parents. Dad, they were probably so mad at her.”

 

All Dean knew to do was pet her hair until she either calmed down or went to sleep. Finally her sobs turned to quiet snores and Dean sighed, miserably, studying her face as she slept, hoping he could think up some way to make her feel better.

 

“Dean,” He looked up when Jo said his name. “You gotta get on the bus, we’re already late getting started.”

 

“I would’ve helped pack up-”

 

“You had bigger things. We handled it. Do you need any help?” Dean looked around at the clothes and other stuff in the room. “We’ve got this, too. Get Emma into a real bed, kay?”

 

He nodded and scooped Emma up, placing a kiss on Jo’s cheek as he walked by.

 

When he got to his bus, he removed Emma’s shoes and tucked her into his bed. After Jo and Charlie brought his stuff the wheels started rolling, leaving Dean by himself for a few hours. He picked up his guitar and a notepad, lyrics and music going through his head.

 

When Emma woke up they were in Illinois for Dean and Benny’s next show. There was coffee on the nightstand next to the bed and a note from Dean.

 

_In Benny’s bus for a few hours. Come over when you’re ready._

 

Emma drank her coffee slowly, going through what she had done in her mind. She came out to and yelled at her mom. Ran away to another state and left said state. Came out to her dad, which meant that everyone had to know by now. She sighed and got dressed before walking to the bus that was behind Dean’s.

 

They were singing when she walked in and she leaned against the wall quietly to listen. Benny’s voice was deep and smooth, perfect for a country star on the rise, while Dean’s was a little higher - still deep, but not baritone - and made him accessible to different genres, although he prefered country.

 

“How you doin’, Em?” Benny asked when they finished.

 

“Okay,” She answered, sitting next to him. He kissed her hair.

 

Emma looked around the bus and saw Dean’s whole crew there, seemingly waiting for an explanation to her sudden appearance.

 

“I didn’t tell them,” Dean said, only to her. “That’s your business.” Emma nodded.

 

“I’m in love with a girl,” Emma said, so everyone could hear her. “I ran away to avoid being ‘fixed.’”

 

Emma didn’t know what she was expecting but everyone coming to hug her once wasn’t it.

 

When she could breathe again, she looked at the faces around her. All smiling and loving. She realized then that just because Lydia gave birth to her, that didn’t make Lydia her mom. Charlie and Jo and her grandma Mary were her mothers. And Dean and Benny were her fathers. This was her real family.

 

“Dad?”

 

“Yeah, baby?”

 

“Could he stop in Pontiac on our way out?”

 

“Uh, yeah, I guess. Why?”

 

“I have to save my damsel from distress.”

 

Emma watched the show from back stage that night. She was surprised when Dean brought a stool and his guitar out, alone on stage.

 

“Something happened last night that inspired me, and I wrote a new song. Do you guys want to hear it?” The screams that resonated were enough to deafen someone a thousand miles away. “Okay, then. This is for my daughter, Emma.”

 

Emma stood in shock for the first verse of the song. Dean had never written a song for her. At least not that she knew of. She snapped back in as the chorus started.

 

“ _You’re not alone, I’ll listen til your tears give out, you’re safe and sound I swear that I won’t let you down, what’s hurting you, I, I feel it too, believe me when I say when you cry I cry with you_ ,” As Dean sang, he looked to where she was standing and Emma smiled at him.

 

When the song was over, Dean waved Emma out and hugged her.

 

“I love you, Dad,” She said.

 

“I love you, too.”

 

~*~

 

Emma had found Claire’s address easily online and they stopped in town the next day. Dean had promised to go to the house with her, but when they opened the bus door, there were hundreds of screaming women outside.

 

“It’s okay,” Emma said, knowing they wouldn’t get through together. “I’ll get someone else to take me.”

 

“You sure?”

 

“Yeah. Benny’s free, right?”

 

That’s how Emma ended up on Claire’s street with her bear of an ‘uncle’ beside her.

 

“Do you want me to go up first? Just in case they recognize you?” He asked. Emma shook her head.

 

“She’s my girlfriend, I’ll go.” She was nervous to knock on the door, but she knew she was safe with Benny behind her. The door jerked opened and Emma stepped back, surprised.

 

“Emma,” Jimmy said. He grabbed her shoulders. Benny stepped forward, but Emma didn’t feel threatened. Jimmy looked desperate. “Please tell me you’ve seen Claire.”

 

“What do you mean?” Jimmy sighed and dropped his hands.

 

“After your mom called, she ran away. I think she heard us talking about sending her to stay with Castiel for a while and misunderstood. We can’t get in touch with her and Castiel hasn’t been well and we’re so worried…”

 

“She’s definitely at Cas’s,” Emma assured him. “She was worried because him and my dad broke up.”

 

“We just need to hear her voice,” Jimmy said. He looked like he hadn’t slept in a week so Emma sighed.

 

“Do you have a laptop I can use?”

 

Emma was sitting at the Novaks kitchen table ten minutes later, calling Claire on video chat.

 

“Emma? Are you okay?” Claire asked as soon as she accepted the call.

 

“Yeah. Are you?”

 

“My parents wanted to send me away somewhere. I’m at Cas’s,” Claire squinted then blinked. “You’re in my house.”

 

“Claire,” Jimmy said, coming into frame. “Oh, thank God.”

 

“Emma, why are you in my house?”

 

“I wanted to see if you were okay and your dad was worried because he couldn’t talk to you.”

 

“You were going to send me to some camp,” Claire accused Jimmy.

 

“No, baby. We were going to let you go back to Castiel’s,” Emma gave him her seat and went to join Benny in the living room. “We figured you’d feel more understood…”

 

An hour later Jimmy and Amelia came into the living room looking much more relaxed.

 

“Claire said she’d see you at the PCAs in a few weeks.” Jimmy said. Emma nodded. She was surprised when he reached out and hugged her. “Thank you.”

 

“It was no problem.” She replied, hugging him back awkwardly. He led them to the door and thanked her again. Benny wrapped his arm around her shoulder as they walked down the street.

 

“Do wanna get some lunch?” He asked, nodding at some fast food places across the street.

 

“I just want to go to sleep,” Emma said. “I was so worried about Claire I haven't been able to rest.”

 

Benny got her through the still huge crowd of women around Dean’s bus, having to push a few of them off the stairs so he could close and lock the door.

 

“How’d it go?” Dean asked, looking up from his notepad. Emma sat down next him while she explained everything, then something hit her.

 

“Are you and Cas still doing the PCAs?” Dean sighed.

 

“We kind of have to. Oh, God, that’s gonna be so awkward.”

 

“You could just call him,” Emma commented, but Dean shook his head and picked up a magazine from the floor. There was a picture of Castiel with another man walking in New York. Emma recognized him as Balthazar Milton, the lead singer of a popular band.

 

“Dad-”

 

“He’s moved on, Em. It’s done.”

 

“Dad, this guy-”

 

“Is tall and hot and-”

 

“Married,” Emma said. “With a baby on the way. He and Cas have been friends for years.”

 

“Oh.” Dean looked down at his guitar.

 

“Call him,” Emma said, standing. She made her way to Dean’s bed and collapsed into the pillows.

 

Of course, Dean didn’t call Cas because he’s a stubborn idiot. Emma watched him pace around the bus as they made their way back to L.A.

 

“I’ll call in sick,” Dean said. Before Emma said anything, he shook his head. “That won’t work, I know. I’ve just gotta nut up and do this. It’s just a three minute song, right? A three minute song we wrote when we loved each other. No big deal.”

 

“Dad, calm down,” Emma said. “Look, Claire said Cas was freaking out, too.”

 

“Good.”

 

When they got to the building the awards were being held in, Emma grabbed Dean’s arm.

 

“I want to find Claire, okay?” Dean nodded. Emma went hunting for Cas’s dressing room, pushing by people who glared at her for existing. When she finally found Cas, he was being shoved against the wall by a man Emma had never seen before.

 

“Don’t be stupid tonight, Castiel. Do you understand me?” Castiel nodded. “Don’t even look at him.”

 

“Okay,” His voice sound so small, scared even, that Emma stepped back into the shadows.

 

“That’s a good boy,” He man said. He kissed Cas forcefully before letting him go. He breezed out of the room and Castiel sank to the floor. He looked so defeated and upset that Emma couldn’t help it, she dropped down beside him and touched his arm. He flinched.

 

“Are you okay?” Cas looked at her then smiled sadly.

 

“I haven’t been okay for a long time, Emma.” He answered and stood up.

 

“Who was that?” Emma asked.

 

“Claire’s out looking for you,” Castiel responded, not turning around. “You should go.”

 

“Cas-”

 

“Please, go.” He whispered. Emma nodded and walked to the door. She stopped as she was about to walk out.

 

“He really misses you,” She said to Castiel’s back and walked away. After searching for a while with no luck, Emma made her way back to Dean’s dressing room. She heard Claire’s voice inside, yelling.

 

“He’s miserable! He can’t sleep, he can’t work. That creep he buys from is stalking him. And you don’t even care!” Emma pushed the door open and grabbed Claire, pulling her out of the room.

 

“He does care,” Emma said. “And that creep was just messing with Cas, you should probably check on him.” She turned her back and walked into Dean’s room.

 

He was on the couch with his head down. There was a whiskey bottle in his hand.

 

“Dad,” Dean held the bottle out. Unopened. Emma took it and poured it down the sink before sitting next to him.

 

“I love him,” Dean said.

 

“I know.”

 

“I fucked up.”

 

“You can fix it, Dad.” Dean started to deny it when a knock came at the door.

 

“They wanna know if you want to rehearse?” Jo said. Dean shook his head.

 

“You’re on at 9:30, okay?” Dean nodded.

 

“Are you gonna be okay?” Emma asked when she was gone.

 

“Yeah. Yeah, I’ll be fine.” They sat there for a while in silence. The show started and Dean started doing voice warm ups that made Emma laugh.

 

“Good luck, Dad.” Emma said, hugging him. He kissed her hair and made his way onto the dark stage. Emma saw Claire standing in the wings and she joined her.

 

“Look-”

 

“Shh!” The music started and a spotlight came down on Dean and Castiel and people started screaming. He didn’t look at Dean as he started singing.

 

_When I feel like I’m losing my mind_

**Bangin’ my head up against the wall**

_Starin’ at nothing ‘cause I can’t sleep at night_

**I can’t make it stop, yeah, I think too much**

 

_What do I do_

_Fallin’ apart_

_I need a shot_

_Straight to my heart_

**_No one would want to be in my shoes right now, oh_ **

 

Emma looked over at Claire and found her staring back. Silently their hand twined together as Castiel finally looked up at Dean.

 

_I don’t reach for the bottle of whiskey_

**(straight on the rocks)**

_No, you won’t see me poppin’ the pills_

**(Poppin’ the pills)**

_**‘Cause if I want the pain to go away, in a second make it fade** _

_**you’re the only thing that will** _

_**You’re my medicine, medicine** _

_**My medicine, medicine** _

_**My, my, my medicine** _

__

The two men had gravitated closer to each other during the chorus and it seemed like they were singing to each other rather that singing together. Dean was staring into Cas’s eyes when he started his next line.

 

**You know, you're an expert at complicating things**

 

Cas looked down and the stage, sadly.

 

_That’s how I’m wired, believe me it’s no fun_

 

Dean pulled his chin back up.

 

**But you make a war seem like such an easy game**

_Kiss me my arguments come undone_

 

_**Down in the trenches** _

_**You are the white flag** _

_**make me surrender** _

_**want you so bad** _

_**baby don’t don’t stop what you started** _

_**don’t ever be done, oh** _

 

_I don’t reach for the bottle of whiskey_

**(straight on the rocks)**

_No, you won’t see me poppin’ the pills_

**(poppin’ the pills)**

**_‘Cause if I want the pain to go away, in a second make it fade_ **

**_you’re the only thing that will_ **

**_You’re my medicine, medicine_ **

**_My medicine, medicine_ **

**_My, my, my medicine_ **

 

They broke away from each other to high five the fans closest to the stage as the beat picked up. Women screamed loudly and Emma rolled her eyes. They were singing a love song to each other for goodness sakes, how blind were they?

 

_**you make it all better, better** _

_**you make me feel whole** _

_**you make it all better, better** _

_**you make me feel whole** _

 

_I don’t reach for the bottle of whiskey_

_No, you won’t see me poppin’ the pills_

‘ _ **Cause if I want the pain to go away, in a second make it fade**_

_**you’re the only thing that will** _

 

**_You’re my, my medicine, medicine_ **

**_My medicine, medicine_ **

**_My, my, my medicine_ **

****

**_you make it all better, better_ **

**_you make me feel whole_ **

**_you make it all better, better_ **

**_you make me feel whole_ **

 

They gravitated back to center stage, looking into each others eyes the whole time.

 

**_you make it all better, better_ **

**_you make me feel whole_ **

**_you make it all better, better_ **

**_you make me feel whole_ **

****

As the song ended, Emma grabbed Claire’s face and kissed her for the first time.

 

**You’re my, my medicine.**

 

The audience screamed louder than ever, but this time sounded different. Emma pulled back and looked on the stage to find Dean kissing Cas like he had never stopped.

 

“Guess they worked it out,” Claire said, sounding a little breathless. Dean and Cas came back stage, holding hands and fending off paparozzi. Dean almost got into a fight with the guy that Emma saw in Cas’s dressing room, but the dealer got nervous when Dean sized him up and the cameras started flashing and he backed off. Dean and Castiel disappeared out the door and into the night without a glance back.

 

Emma looked back when someone touched her shoulder. It was Benny. He was smiling, holding Jo’s hand.

 

“Why don’ you two stay with us tonight. I don’ think you wanna be in your dad’s bus right now.”

 

“I might stay with for the rest of the tour, in that case.” Emma laughed. They all walked out together, giving Dean’s tour bus a wide berth, just in case.

 

After the award show, pictures of Dean and Cas surfaced everywhere. Everyone wanted a shot them, even if they were just standing in line at the store. Emma like to say that were more popular that Brangelina and started calling them Destiel. The name stuck and started showing up in magazines, too.

 

Dean started his own label the next year and Cas was the first one signed on. He changed his sound completely and everyone loved it. Gone was the cookie cutter pop and in was the acoustic singer/songwriter he always wanted to be. Dean was only a little jealous that his whole first album was about a man he’d had a crush on in college, since the songs he’d wanted to record first had been written back then.

 

Dean’s sound changed a bit, too. He started putting out more love songs that made women swoon more than ever before.

 

Emma got her own claim to fame in modeling for teen magazines and clothing lines. Since most of her work would be in L.A., Lydia agreed to let her move there. As long as her grades stayed up and she went to college.

 

Cas moved into Dean’s house a few months after the awards show and, even though they had their own rooms, Emma and Claire usually slept in the same bed. When Dean found out he shrugged, “It’s not like you can get her pregnant.”

 

A few weeks later Claire decided to go home to Pontiac and her parents. She missed them and her friends. The paps got some great pictures of her and Emma saying goodbye at the airport. She promised Emma and Cas that she visit all the time and had to run make it before the doors closed.

 

Even after a year of being together, Emma and Claire would walk in on Dean and Cas making out like teenagers in the living room, just as often as Dean and Cas would walk in on her and Claire. Neither of them were surprised when the men got engaged.

 

The wedding was small. Just the men and the people that meant the most to them. Balthazar, Castiel’s best friend and the guy all of his college songs were about, was there was his wife and son, along with Jimmy and Amelia and Cas’s other brother Gabriel. Dean’s usual crew was there, along with Sam and Jess, Mary and John, and Bobby and Ellen.

 

They were in a meadow that they rented for the occasion. It would be a simple vow and ring exchange. Emma was taking picture that would be released on Facebook and other social media, not sold to paparozzi, because Dean didn’t sell the first happiest moment of his life and he wasn’t selling the second one either.

 

An hour later the Novak-Winchester’s were off to Europe and Emma was curled up in her bed at Benny’s house with Claire.

 

“Do you think we’ll get married?” Claire asked. Emma shrugged.

 

“Maybe. Or you may meet some hot person at college and decide to marry them.”

 

“That is a more likely option,” Claire agreed, kissing Emma before rolling onto her side.

 

Emma shut out the light and pulled Claire closer. She fell asleep, dreaming of what the future may hold.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Music mentioned:
> 
> What You Gonna Do - Hunter Hayes  
> Cry With You - Hunter Hayes  
> Medicine - Shakira feat. Blake Shelton
> 
> Artist inspiration:
> 
> Dean: Blake Shelton, Billy Currington, Dierks Bentley, Parmalee, Lee Brice, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan
> 
> Castiel: (In Beginning): The White Tie Affair, Neon Trees, Cobra Starship, Fall Out Boy, 5 Seconds Of Summer  
>  (In End): Emily Kinney, Darren Criss, Hunter Hayes
> 
> Benny: Brantley Gilbert, Eric Pasley, Eric Church, Tyler Farr, Chase Rice, Jason Aldean
> 
> Balthazar: Hedley, Framing Hanley, Coldplay, The Script


End file.
